Week 6 Flashcards
Mediatization
- The way that other institutions adjust to the logic of the media institution: you need to play the game by media’s rules
- Media are powerful agents with their own goals, interests and values
- All societal institutions are to a certain degree exposed to media(tization) pressures
- This process in change is mutual in nature - organizations adapt to media, but media need to adapt to changes as well
Institutions
Domain or field of social life that is governed by a particular set of formal and informal rules, displays a particular structure, serves certain social functions and allocates resources for action in various ways
Institutional perspective
Processes of change within an institution are viewed as an exchange between different logics from particular societal institutions meeting and blending
Levels of analysis
- macro = societal level
- meso = institutional level
- micro = individual level
Today’s corporations (Ilhlen & Pallas)
- have become perhaps the most dominant institution in modern society
- are embedded in increasingly complex and conflicting socio-economic contexts
- are critically scrutinized by the media
- which has led to an increasing investment of media relations
Ihlen & Pallas defining features of the mediatization process
- they play a role in how different societal actors relate and understand each other
- it is possible for institutions to take advantage of these processes through the practice of media relations
Why is positive coverage so important?
Gaining legitimacy and achieving a good reputation through the media serves multiple goals:
1. increased sales
2. acceptance of customers of price increases
3. attracting investors
4. helping recruit and hold on to valued employees
5. build brands
6. lessens media criticism
Effects of mediatization in organizations
Media practices are integrated in the entire organization:
1. communication professionals in corporate boards
2. interaction with media: spokesperson, rise of superstar CEO
3. timing: communication adjusted to rhythm of media
4. the structure of organization aligned with media strategy
How to practice media relations?
- employ pseudo events
- meet the media’s demands for conflicts, faces and feelings
- respect journalists’ deadlines and be responsive
- cultivate/maintain relationships with journalists
- construct frames that are resonant with culture
- be proactive
- create archives and databases for media requests/reports
Bureaucracies
Refers to a body of non-elected government officials and an administrative policy-making group. They operate on behalf of government
Logic of bureaucracies
bureaucracies have clear organizational borders and formal rules based on a comprehensive set of procedures and norms of conduct derived from regulations and law
News logic
- the news logic brings with it a specific rhythm and a certain relation to time and timeliness
- news logic is founded on the premise that news is and should be important and significant
- the power of news logic is based on the assumption that the media offer a description of reality that matters and has consequences for those described
Logic of appropriateness
- Defines a basis for decision making biased toward what social norms deem right rather than what cost-benefit calculations consider best
- Rules of the media are regarded as self-evident, natural
- Contrast: clear formal rules based on regulation and law (public bureaucracies)
Four responses of bureaucracies to mediatization
- Adapting to rhythm of news
- Adapting to language and format news
- Believe in significance in the news
- Reallocating resources
Four responses - adapting to rhythm of news
- always available for media, media requests are always being prioritized
- timeliness important part of media logic
- proactive: preparing press releases in advance
- timing: expected to continuously strive to pitch positive news stories in order to set the news agenda; on the other hand, they are expected to provide press release on unpopular or delicate matters at a time when media attention is directed elsewhere